Student's death leads to fall of government
June 15, 1960
A protest at the Diet against revision of the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty turned violent and resulted in the death of a 22-year-old college student on June 15, 1960. Protests continued outside the Diet until Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi announces his resignation.
Student protesters clash with police outside the Diet on June 15, 1960, after the government railroaded the revised Japan-U.S. Security Treaty through the Lower House by physically removing members of the opposition parties who were trying to block a vote on the treaty.
Michiko Kanba, a 22-year-old student at the University of Tokyo, was one of the protesters who gathered in front of the Diet on June 15, 1960. The thousands of protesters clashed with riot police trying to prevent the Diet being stormed. Kanba was crushed amid the confusion and killed.
Protesters carry a statue of Michiko Kanba in protests on June 18, 1960. About 330,000 protesters reportedly marched through the streets of Tokyo, but no vote was taken in the Upper House, and the treaty was approved because of constitutional provisions that gave priority to the vote in the Lower House.
Massive protests continue in Tokyo. The confusion leads to U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower canceling a scheduled trip to Japan. Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi takes responsibility for the confusion and resigns in July. Kishi's successor, Hayato Ikeda, takes a more low-key approach and focuses on doubling the national income.
About 50 people observe a moment of silence on June 15, 2010, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the protests. Flowers were placed in front of the gate where Michiko Kanba was said to have died during the clash with police 50 years earlier. She remained a symbol for the generation who lived through the protests against the security treaty.
